While visiting the Persian Gulf last month for an international mine clearing exercise it was mentioned that the whole area was under constant surveillance by a Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) drone.
The BAMS offers a 360-degree scanning ability with an Automatic Identification System that clocks and catalog's all surface vessels from 60,000 feet.
If the BAMS truly is flying above the Gulf it's early, not having been pegged for regular duty until 2015, but that's what I heard.
In addition to the high altitude scanning, the USS Ponce also uses the Scan Eagle drone system that can zoom in on individuals in small boats from several thousand feet in the air.
We posted this presentation several months ago, but thought it interesting after getting wind it was stationed in the Gulf, and shows that multi-level surveillance could become the norm.
Here's what the U.S. is watching. These are the 5 main operating bases where the MQ-4C fleet will be used, networking with other Navy and Air Force drones — notice the Persian Gulf has overlapping coverage by two BAMS drones
The MQ-C4 is designed for persistent maritime surveillance and intelligence-gathering — its makers say the Navy will have "24/7" coverage. The drone can travel 11,450 miles before it needs to be refueled
Along with its 360-degree scanning, it can capture images or full motion video at high resolution
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